Courses

The course will consist of a systematic introduction to German grammar and will develop a foundational working vocabulary. Exercises will be provided with the focused goal of learning to read academic German. The course will not include conversational German nor is there a high expectation of memorized vocabulary. There is however an expectation that the student will know all basic syntagms and be able to analyse, comprehend, and accurately translate German at a complex syntactical level, such as is used in scholarly journals and texts. There are no minimal requirements of knowledge of German to enter the course, but some familiarity with German will assist in maintaining the pace of the course.

 Knowing

• The student will be able to pass a German reading exam for the purposes of the PhD program upon completion of the course. Passing the exam will qualify the student for the modern language requirement of their respective PhD programs at McMaster Divinity College.

Being

• German Quickly is designed to be an introductory text that the student will enjoy. The whole course will be designed to make the experience fun and profitable. Learning languages should not be drudgery. Concepts will be covered so that better clarity is achieved in all use of language. Frisch begonnen ist halb gewonnen! (A fresh start is half the victory.)

Doing

• Students will read German voluntarily for enjoyment, but more importantly, they will search all relevant German bibliography for research on a particular topic. There will be a minimal introduction to general German literature and culture.